Manufacturing assembly lines often require tasks to be repeated hundreds or even thousands of times in a given day. These tasks may involve an operator positioning and operating a relatively heavy power tool by hand. For example, on a hard drive manufacturing assembly line an operator may be required to drive as many as 7,000 screws using a power screwdriver during a single shift. Operator fatigue may result in the screwdriver being improperly positioned during operation thereby causing damage to the screws and/or the hard drive components being fastened.
Conventional solutions for helping an operator to support a power tool on a manufacturing assembly line have several deficiencies particularly relevant to hard drive manufacturing assembly lines. For example, many solutions still require significant effort on the part of an operator to maintain the power tool in a proper position and orientation during operation. In addition, many solutions require support structures too large for use in relatively confined work stations. Finally, many solutions are not suitable for use in the cleanroom environments of hard drive manufacturing assembly lines.